This invention relates in general to archery equipment and deals more particularly with an improved arrow rest for an archery bow.
In the past, archery bows have been equipped with various types of arrow rests which hold arrows positioned in the bow. Examples are the arrow rests disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,935,854 and 4,332,232. In the known arrow rests that have been available commercially, a pair of fingers which support the arrow on their tips extend from a rotatable shaft. A spring urges the shaft to rotate in one direction to normally maintain the fingers in position to receive the arrow and yet permit the fingers to "give" when the arrow is shot and exerts a force on them sufficient to overcome the spring force.
These commercially available arrow rests are not entirely satisfactory in all respects. Because both fingers are mounted on the same shaft, both of the fingers must move together in the same direction at the same time. If the arrow is skewed somewhat in the bow to one side or the other, it exerts more force on one finger than the other. However, because the two fingers are mounted rigidly with one another, they must yield or give together even though one is subjected to more force than the other. Consequently, the arrow can bind in the arrow rest or can fall off of it more to one side than to the other side, and the arrow can travel off line as a result.
Existing arrow rests also have fingers which curve at their tips toward one another, and the arrow is thus held on the tips somewhat insecurely and can roll off of the fingers, especially if the bow is tilted. Because a single spring must hold both fingers in place, a rather stiff spring is required and the considerable force of the stiff spring must be overcome before the fingers can deflect. The spring force 15 also applied at a location offset from the fingers, and the spring can cause skewing or binding of the components of the arrow rest.
The present invention provides an improved arrow rest in which a pair of fingers that hold the arrow are able to deflect independently of one another. In accordance with the invention, a mounting bracket secured to the bow carries a pin on which a mounting base for the arrow rest is secured. A pair of blocks are pivotally mounted on opposite sides of the base for movement separately nd independently of one another about the pivot axis of the pin. A finger extends from each pivot block, and the fingers have tips which curve away from another to provide a stable seating area for receiving and holding the arrow.
Each finger has a separate spring, and the two springs act independently to urge the pivot blocks in a direction to normally maintain the fingers parallel to one another in a position to receive the arrow. Because each finger is independently mounted and has its own separate spring, the fingers can deflect separately and independently of one another. Thus, one finger can deflect more than the other finger when unequal forces are applied to the two fingers. As a result, the arrow rest is able to accommodate arrows that are placed in the bow at a skewed orientation without throwing the arrow off line. Likewise, the arrow does not bind in the arrow rest or inadvertently fall off of the fingers. In the latter respect, the outward curve of the fingertips is important in that is provides a stable seating area for the arrow and maintains the arrow securely in place in the arrow rest. Another benefit of providing each finger with its own spring is that relatively small springs can be used and each finger can deflect whenever a force is applied to it sufficient to overcome the spring force that opposes deflection.